Indians Prospect Insider

According to a report in a Japanese newspaper, free agent right-handed pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka is considering a minor league offer from the Indians as well as the Miami Marlins and New York Mets. He has been limited the last two seasons because of elbow reconstruction surgery in 2011, but may be worth a flier.

The winter seasons are quickly coming to a close, but a few Indians players were still at it on Wednesday. Asdrubal Cabrera and Ezequiel Carrera each recorded hits for their clubs in the VWL. Plus, Jose Ramirez may have competed in one of his final games of the winter season. The IBI's Steve Orbanek recaps all the action as he takes you Around the Farm.

The IBI's 2013 Indians top prospect countdown is here.....well....sort of. Tomorrow we kick things off with the first player in the on-line listing with #60, but today Tony sets us all up with a preview to help explain where the Indians' system is at the moment, the strengths and weaknesses of the system, the breakout candidates, who is eligible to be ranked, and all the guidelines for the ranking. Don't forget, the new 2013 book will soon be available and provide detailed profiles of over 180+ prospects in the Indians' system!

The Indians new approach is obvious at the major league level, but how will it effect the minor league level going forward? Will prospects begin to move more quickly through the system, or will patience be at a premium? Will Terry Francona's new book that will be released next week give any indications towards why he really chose the Indians? The first excerpts released give some early clues. Join Jim Pete for another stroll around the Corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

Jose Ramirez continues to impress and progress at the plate. That was evident on Tuesday as the switch-hitting infielder was just a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. Also, Asdrubal Cabrera and recently acquired pitcher Jerry Gil were among the other Indians players in winter ball action on Tuesday. The IBI's Steve Orbanek recaps all of the night's action and statistics as he takes you Around the Farm.

We continue with our 2013 prospect coverage here at the IBI with a look at the right-handed starters in the Indians system. There is no doubt that right-handed starting pitching is one of the Indians weakest positions in the entire organization, and is why they really targeted young upper level pitching in trades this offseason. Tony looks at what right-handed starting options are available to the Indians in the future and breaks down the future and potential for the likes of Austin Adams, Dylan Baker, Trevor Bauer, Mitch Brown, Luis DeJesus, Trey Haley, Dillon Howard, Kieran Lovegrove, Mason Radeke, Danny Salazar, and more. This is the final positional overview as the annual IBI Top Prospect countdown will commence on Thursday.

Coming off of major surgery, Chen-Chang Lee is one of many Indians pitchers that is now somewhat of a question mark heading into the 2013 season. Lee was once one of the most dominant relievers in the Indians system, but what can be expected from him as he makes his way back from the surgery? The IBI's Steve Orbanek recaps Lee's career in this week's edition of Then & Now.

The playoffs in the various winter leagues raged on Monday night, but the big news was one of the Indians best prospects suffering an injury where he had to leave the game. Tony talks about that player and what happened, and also provides updates on all the rest of the Indians that were in action on the night.

When the Arizona Diamondbacks agreed to include Trevor Bauer in a deal this offseason that sent him to the Cleveland Indians, many inside baseball thought that something had to have gone terribly wrong between the pitcher and his old team. No one may ever know the truth, but in Cleveland’s case, they are saying nothing but positive things about their top pitching prospect now.

Welcome to this week's IBI Power Poll. Each week the poll takes a look at a relevant topic of the time, an all-time list, or just something that we're talking about here at the IBI home offices. There's nothing like a list to spur a debate, so join us in our lively banter with our weekly polls! Today's poll focuses on last week's Baseball Hall of Fame vote, and gives the readers here at IBI a chance to vote in their own Hall candidates. Have your vote counted, after the jump...

The major league hot stove season has had a bit of a lull, but like the sands in an hourglass, the Tribe's system continues moving through time, heading towards spring training. Rob Bryson made his nineteenth appearance tonight, and while the numbers showcase a nice winter, today added a bit of a blemish. Campbell stayed hot in Austrailia, and Cid and Ramirez battled in a playoff, face-off. Join Jim Pete with another edition of Around the Farm.

What a fun offseason this has been for the Indians. They have made a few big trades, made some significant moves in free agency, and been in on lots of other players. But even though the Indians say they are probably done with their heavy lifting this offseason, Tony thinks they should take advantage of a unique opportunity this offseason to sign another big named free agent because it is an opportunity which may never present itself again. He also talks about the Hall of Fame voting issues, how Kenny Lofton got hosed, and lots more.

Cleveland prospects were playing in both Venezuela and Australia on Saturday night, and putting on quite the offensive display. In the VWL playoffs, Zeke Carrera was facing off against Asdrubal Cabrera and Jesus Aguilar, and helped his team take a 4-3 lead. He also had a hand in keeping a future Tribe teammate from scoring go-ahead run. Andrew Campbell continued a hot stretch with a blast in a successful doubleheader. Join Jim Pete for another edition of Around the Farm.

We continue with our 2013 prospect coverage here at the IBI with a look at the right-handed relievers in the Indians system. The Indians are overloaded with right-handed relief prospects and it is arguably the one position they are deepest at in the entire system. At the moment they have a Major League bullpen bursting at the seams with right-handed relievers, and that is the same thing for Triple-A Columbus and Double-A Akron. Tony looks at what right-handed relief options are available to the Indians in the future and breaks down the future and potential for the likes of Cody Allen, Shawn Armstrong, Rob Bryson, Preston Guilmet, Bryce Stowell, Grant Sides, Cody Penny and many others.

A number of Indians players had strong performances in the winter leagues on Friday. Asdrubal Cabrera and Andrew Campbell each had multi-hit performances while Rob Bryson continued to shut down the opposition. Plus, Jesus Aguilar and Jose Ramirez continued to build upon their strong winter seasons. The IBI's Steve Orbanek recaps all of the night's action as he takes your Around the Farm.

Currently, Major League Baseball is the only major professional sport without a salary cap. For years this has hurt small market clubs in their pursuit of quality players, and the big market clubs with the luxury of huge revenue streams could simply outspend small market teams. It was the classic example of the haves and have-nots. But new IBI contributor Will Joyce says that while more work needs to be done, that things are slowly changing and the new CBA that was adopted last year may be helping smaller revenue teams.

The playoffs continue in the Venezuelan, Dominican and Puerto Rican Winter Leagues, and a few Indians players have upped their game as they push forward for a chance at a league championship. In particular, Jesus Aguilar launched three home runs this past week, and Asdrubal Cabrera continues to impress at the plate. The IBI's Steve Orbanek recaps all the action and provides all of the winter statistics in this week's edition of the Winter Ball Notebook.

It was a fairly uneventful night in the winter leagues last night, though plenty of newcomers to Cleveland made appearances. Quincy Latimore, Jerry Gil, and Edward Paredes were all in action last night and they had varying levels of success. To find out who did well and who didn't, along with tracking the other Cleveland players in action last night, join Jim Piascik as he takes you Around The Farm.

Just one year ago, Austin Adams was one of the most talked about prospects in the Indians farm system. The hard-throwing right-hander had just completed a brilliant 2011 campaign, and he seemed poised for another... until injuries hit. Now, it's hard to say what lies ahead for Adams, but he's certainly not the prospect he was a year ago. What exactly is in store for Adams? The IBI's Steve Orbanek opines when he looks at Adams' career in this week's edition of Then & Now.

Available IBI Books

The 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider book featuring the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is now available. Also, previous editions from 2008-2012 are also available at a discounted rate. Just click on the book image for more information. Thanks again for all the support!